Fertile Women More Likely to Wear Red

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WASHINGTON D.C. — That little red dress or pink sweater may be
sending more of a message than you think: it could be an overt
sign of a woman's fertility, a new study suggests.

In the study, 124 women ages 18 to 47 were asked what color shirt
they were wearing, and when they had their last period. From the
latter question, researchers calculated which women in the study
were currently at the
peak of fertility in their cycles (about six to 14 days after
the last period).

Those who were wearing red or pink were about three times more
likely to be at peak fertility than those who wore other colors,
the study found.

Previous research showed that some animals put on displays during
their fertile periods to attract mates, but no such displays were
known to exist in humans, the researchers said. The new study
provides some evidence to suggest there may be a way to directly
observe ovulation — the time of the month when a woman is most
likely to become pregnant, the researchers said.

However, more research is needed to replicate the findings in a
larger population. The study also did not measure hormone levels,
which is a more accurate way to determine peak
fertility.

The researchers plan to conduct a follow-up study that asks women
why they chose to wear a particular color that day, said study
researcher Alec Beall, a doctoral student at the University of
British Columbia.

Many cultures associated the color red
with love and passion, and previous studies have shown that
men rate pictures of women as more attractive if they are
surrounded by a red border.

Some studies have found that women report increased sexual desire
around peak fertility, greater attraction
to masculine features, and a tendency to wear more revealing
clothing, the researchers said.

The reason behind the new findings is not clear, and future
studies are needed to determine whether women wear red or pink
around ovulation because they want to look sexy, the researchers
said.

It could also be that women may wear these colors because they
are attention-grabbing, and women — consciously or subconsciously
— want to bring attention to themselves at a time when they feel
sexy, even if they are not necessarily seeking the attention of
men, the researchers said.

A follow-up study by the same group of researchers found that
fewer women wore red at
their peak fertility in the summertime, compared with the
wintertime. A possible explanation for this finding is that women
may be more likely to use the "wearing red" strategy in
situations when they cannot use other attention-getting
strategies, such as wearing less clothing (which would be easier
in the summertime), Beall said.

The study was presented here at the annual meeting of the
Association for Psychological Science on May 26. It has been
accepted for publication in the journal Psychological Science.
Beall conducted the work with Jessica Tracy, associate professor
of psychology and director of UBC's Emotion & Self Lab.